Celebrating PAT, A Party “For Anyone From Anywhere Wearing Anything & Loving Who They Want”
A queer-centric dance party started by JD Samson & Amber Valentine has turned 10.
Last month, PAT celebrated its ten-year anniversary, which according to Kay Turner (@kay__turner), is a remarkable feat considering the great difficulty in keeping any sort of business afloat in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, let alone a once-a-month queer nightlife event. What’s PAT you may ask? For those uninformed and uninitiated, PAT is a queer-centric dance party that was first started in 2013 by DJs JD Samson (@jd_samson) and Amber Valentine (@ambervalentinenyc) and which ever since has been held once a month at Union Pool, a multi-purpose bar located at 484 Union Avenue. The much-beloved PAT has long attracted a wonderful mix of genders, races, ethnicities and sexual orientations and has boasted a world-class roster of DJs spinning in both of Union Pool’s front and back rooms, allowing for the party’s dance-crazed patrons to switch musical gears throughout any given night.
In chatting with Samson, I was able to glean the serendipitous origins of PAT back when it first began in 2013. At the time, Samson (known for being in the bands Le Tigre and MEN, among other things) had been throwing a queer tea dance called Scissor Sundays at a bar named The Rusty Knot, located at 425 West Street in the West Village. Friends of Samson’s from Union Pool then reached out and invited them to try a party there, and shortly thereafter, PAT was born. With PAT, Samson wanted to bring the same disco and house music vibes popular at Scissor Sundays over to a nighttime event. When asked about the origin of the party’s name, Samson replied: “The name really came out of wanting to call out some kind of non binary/masc cultural phenomenon of some sort. I was toying with the idea of "Yep" coming from the Ellen cover of Time Magazine, "Yep I'm Gay". But PAT felt like a better representation of what we wanted to do, create a party that just felt like [a] party. No bells, no whistles, no signifiers, no gender. Just fun and happy and free.”
As aforementioned, Samson was friends with the people running Union Pool, which is how it came to be the venue of choice for PAT. As a bar, Union Pool in fact first opened way back in the year 2000, deriving its name as well as taking over the space from a former pest control/swimming pool supply store. Over its 23-year existence, it grew from a neighborhood corner bar where regulars played darts and everyone knew each other into a multi-entertainment hive that hosts a variety of events on the regular, offering a little something for everybody. Union Pool's physical space is comprised of a main bar with an analog photo booth and a pinball machine, a back room that operates as a live music venue, an outdoor patio with lots of seating and even a taco truck parked in said patio, operated by El Diablo Tacos. Samson also mentioned their deeper history and connection with Union Pool, noting that they spent 9/11 there alongside NYC’s most well known drag king entertainer, Murray Hill (@murrayhill).
JD Samson noted several key elements which contributed to the initial success of PAT as a party. First and foremost was the support and collaboration of PAT co-host and fellow DJ Amber Valentine (known for being the resident DJ for nightlife queen Susanne Bartsch, among other things) who, according to Samson is “the best DJ in the entire world, full stop. Everyone loves Amber, and I basically think a lot of them come just to see her!” Another key early figure at PAT was Tyler Jensen (@tylerkinesis), who began making videos for the party right from the beginning and has continued to do so ever since.
In addition to having both Samson and Valentine spin on the regular, PAT also aimed to attract world-class DJ talents to play in the two disparate rooms that Union Pool has to offer. As a result, over the years PAT has hosted a plethora of incredible DJs, including the likes of Ana Rezende (@anarezendephoto), Horrorchata (@chata.nyc), Hannah Lou (@djhannahlou), Eli Escobar (@eliescobarnyc), Lauren Flax (@laurenflax), Beppe Savoni (@beppe_savoni), Tiffany Roth (@tifffroth), Roze Royze (@roze_royze), Gavilán Rayna Russom (@gavilanraynarussom), Robinette Jones (@robinette.jones), Nasser Baker (@nasserbaker) and countless others.
Most importantly, perhaps, to PAT’s success was that Samson, Valentine and Union Pool together agreed that from the very start PAT as a party would be always be free of charge. Samson elaborated on this integral element: “At the time, there weren't many places to hear good DJs playing house and disco music that were free. It just felt inaccessible to a lot of people to see really great DJs and the goal was to bring good DJs and pay them well, but keep the party free. It isn't a business, we don't make money. The goal is to simply bring music and good vibes to the community. It's so simple. I think now, there are way more places to go and we love that. PAT will always just be PAT, and we are cool with that. No cross collaborations with brands or sponsors or anything with marketing. We just exist to be a space for our people and to elevate DJs that we love and that are good people.”
PAT’s openness and accessibility, paired with its tagline that PAT is “for anyone from anywhere wearing anything and loving who they want” meant that the party has attracted a vibrantly mixed-queer crowd throughout its decade of existence. PAT has served as a particularly popular dance party for queer women, trans-people and non-binary folk, with GOMag calling it "always super cute with the best vibes" & EllgeeBE stating that PAT "is welcoming to a creative crowd of both queers and straights, particularly a fun-loving set of fashion-forward ladies." Meanwhile, WeAreHer.Com named PAT "THE party to be on a Thursday night." Samson added that PAT at Union Pool “really just works because we work together on making a safe and inclusive space.”
Having just thrown its ten-year birthday bash in September 2023, it appears that PAT doesn’t have plans to slow down anytime soon. According to Samson, working with Valentine, Tylerkinesis and Union Pool has been “just the most wholesome collaboration ever!!!” noting that it’s always been joyful and easy and that there’s never been a single fight or moment of drama surrounding the party. Samson also added: “The future of PAT is up to the people. We have been taking a few months off here and there, and it hasn’t stopped the momentum.” And the people certainly do want more, as many fans commented their love for PAT like Anna Parisi (@aluparisi) who wrote “best party in town 🔥”, Sage Hazarika (@sagelovesny) who said “❤️ Thank you PAT! ❤️” and Drew Beck (@drewbeck), who perhaps put it best by declaring “PAT is life.” Happy Birthday PAT, and here’s to hoping for another ten years!
